BEST Pro-Bars will never twist, bend or warp from moisture or dryness. The stretchers are made from wood and aluminum making a stronger and more rigid support. An ideal choice for painting on a large scale, without the bulk and weight of heavy-duty stretcher strips. Pro-Bars are easy to assemble and custom cut to the exact size you need.

BEST Pro-Bars will never twist, bend or warp from moisture or dryness.

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Brackets

BEST Aluminum Pro Bars is rated 4.5 out of 5 by 4.

Rated 5 out of 5 by Joshua Point Painter from Problem SolvedAs an artist working on Masonite panels, I had a big problem with warping support systems. I received numerous calls from clients asking me to repair paintings that had lifted away from the wall. Sizing both sides of the panels was helpful however, the most important improvement came by switching from 1"X2"pine supports to Aluminum Pro Bars. The L shaped keys that join the supports together are easy to use, and provide maximum strength to the corners. It is especially important to use this system with panels over 24" in any direction. I would suggest using two (2) keys per corner with all size configurations. I recently finished a 60"X48" piece with great success. It is difficult to mount wire for hanging, and the supports are a bit pricey, but the results are worth making the change. Most importantly, no more phone calls from disappointed clients.

Date published: 2011-03-12

Rated 5 out of 5 by Stretched hundreds from BEST METAL AND WOOD PRO BARSBest has never really correctly publicized or explained this product so I still see people in art stores looking at a bar with a question mark on their face. That could explain why the best product of its kind available is not seen more. The other explanation is what I have seen all around the world, artists are interested in selling but don't give much consideration to the conservation aspect and use the cheapest bars, canvas, staples, poor stretching method. I have been using these bars since 1995 in all sizes above 9x12, I use 2 keys in each corner and I can assure you that you will not experience any movement or warping of any kind. I have professionnal friends here in the southwest who swear by them , having experienced warping and client compaints or gallery complaints when they ship to a humid climate. With these no problems but of course there is no money profit consideration to motivate anyone to use these bars, simply your respect of your art and of your clients. The other plus is that the bars position the canvas away from themselves so no ghosting will appear down the line and that is very difficult to correct when cleaning and restoring and I see a lot of that on paintings only a few years old. I stretch to the back but you can stretch even more easily to the side. For large paintings they are even more useful and the wood part is small enough to fit a frame correctly not stick out from the frame in the back as I often see, resulting in a warped frame and painting very often. The manufacturer will also cut bars to your precise measure down to a millimiter if you need them for a restoration or restretching project.These bars can travel and experience diffrent climates and humidity levels without any problems. very simply compare a steel frame building with a wooden frame post war house, the latter is nearly always crooked. These are the best bars, you simply need to use them once to understand why.

Date published: 2010-05-17

Rated 4 out of 5 by from Purchased these many timesI like these a lot. I have used them up to the 50" length and have been very pleased. I have not tried or needed the cross bars. The stretchers are light and they don't seem to warp. If you do very delicate or thin work you might not be interested, the surface where the wood miters meet on the front of the stretcher is good, but not perfect. Sometimes I sand it down a bit to even it out. That said, I will definitely continue to use these. Make sure that you remember to order corner brackets at the same time. 1 in each corner is fine but 2 in each corner is better.

Date published: 2012-04-16

Rated 4 out of 5 by from Solid and StraightBuilt a 104"x84" frame with 4 additional crossbars. After gessoing the raw linen, the crossbars did bow, but the stretcher bars remained stout. After drying, the crossbars settled in, and the frame is very solid.